Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, left, shakes hands with Wu Bangguo, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing April 2, 2007. [Xinhua]

The United States and China should cooperate to face up a host of issues that challenge the world today, Dr Henry A. Kissinger, former US secretary of state, told the 800-plus scholars and students Tuesday, April 3, in Beijing.

"Our future depends on (Sino-US) cooperation, and that's why I am so committed to friendship between our two countries," he said in a keynote speech at the Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, drawing warm applause and laughter.

During his speech, Kissinger, who made his first visit to China in 1971 on a secret trip that broke the ice frozen for some 20 years, couldn't help but share his amazement about the changes that have taken place in China.

"China has developed in a manner that none of us could have imagined 35 years ago," he said. "China has grown with the dedication of its people by its own effort."

Following the traditional concept that shaped the international system for the past three centuries, people believed that conflicts were inevitable when "the center of gravity moves from one region to another" and when another country suddenly becomes "very powerful", he said.

He said he believed in China's rise. "The rise of China is inevitable, and there is nothing we could do about it," he said. "There is nothing we could do to prevent it or should do to prevent."

What Kissinger projected is cooperation. "Cooperation is essential," he said.

Only by cooperation, can countries in the world, the US and China included, be able to deal with the climate change, environmental problems, economic globalization, nuclear proliferation or other security issues, which challenge the humanity.